The third Big Bang Theory cast member who reaped an Emmy nom, Mayim Bialik is also the first female member of the cast to do so. I really think that she what it takes to win this; however, her episode submission is what lets her down. She predictably chose to go with the “tiara” episode, and while that is one of the funniest and most memorable moments of the season, the “scene” is too short enough to stand on its own and give her the Emmy. As a matter of fact, the scene is only two minutes short, and aside from one scene in the beginning, she’s missing in the whole episode. I call this is as a case of wrong submission ruining your Emmy chances. Current winner Julie Bowen is up for another chance to take a consecutive win in this category. After all, her submission involves her being drunk and fun, something that Emmy has rewarded with Emmys in the past. However, it’s not as slam dunk as her chances last year where she got two winning tapes that shows her range. In Sofia Vergara’s episode, she comes off as whiny and unlikable, and I don’t think that will gain her more votes in this category. While I’m fine with a repeat win for her, it seems she’s helping returning Vergara the favor of helping her win the Emmy this year. This one seems more of a tribute nom for Kathryn Joosten after her untimely death earlier this year; however, I don’t think it’s an easy win for her as some perceive. since we’ve seen time and again how nomination is the reward for those posthumous nominations. But then again, she’s Kathryn Joosten and this nominated role has already won twice before. Episode wise, she gets a winning trial scene where she spoke of friendship that she had at Wisteria Lane, and aside from that, she has her death scene in the end. It’s definitely the key to her win, and I think that’s where Emmy voters will go. Sofia Vergara has a history of being a bad submitter at the Emmys. During the first season, instead of submitting Coal Digger, she went with Not in My House. Last year, instead of going with Unplugged, she submitted Slow Down Your Neighbors. However, this year, it seems like an intervention was finally done and she submitted Tableau Vivant which highlighted her being jealous of Jay’s close friend. This, together with Julie Bowen’s submission, might finally be the year where she’s really in competition. Merritt Weveris a surprise nod this year considering she gets in while the likes of Jane Krakowski, Betty White, and Cloris Leahman were perceived as likelier nominees. However, her nomination should have come sooner than this year, as she’s giving Emmy worthy performances week in and week out in Nurse Jackie. In her submission, she’s looking for a new roommate, until Jackie decided to invite her to live in with her as she dances in the kitchen. I admit, there’s really not a laugh out loud scene in her submission, but every now and then, we see a winner that caters more on the emotion rather than the laughs (Cynthia Nixon, Jean Smart), and Wever fits the bill. Let’s not even pretend that the final graduation scene in the season finale will seal the deal for Kristin Wiig. After all, Emmys have proven time and again that they do not care if this is your last bid for the Emmy (Steve Carell, Jane Kaczmarek, Angela Lansbury anyone?). However, that’s just the icing on the cake for Wiig, as she delivers some of her funniest skits in the Mick Jagger episode. She was also present in all the skits in her episode, and probably has the longest screentime in terms of submitted tapes. That, plus her new A-list status after the Oscar nomination this February can propel Wiig to an Emmy win.

This one is really a difficult category to assess; the secret lies to what the type of performance voters are looking for. This year, I’m going with Academy’s favorite Kathryn Joosten though running on her heels is Kristen Wiig who can easily win this trophy as well.

Last Sunday, the women of Wisteria Lane bid goodbye as we’ve witnessed the series finale of Desperate Housewives. After eight years on the tube, surviving a tornado, a fire incident, a plane crash and a huge amount of killings in such a short lane, the show finally aired its last episode.

Being one of the show’s biggest fans, I’ve managed to stick through the course of the eight seasons whether it’s the good (Seasons 1 and 4), the okay (Seasons 3, 5, and 7), and the really bad (S2, S6). The show has really carved its way to be one of the best pop culture reference during the time it was on the air, and though the enthusiasm died more and more as each season starts, the impact that Susan Mayer, Bree van de Kamp, Lynette Scavo, and Grabrielle Solis brought worldwide will never ever be denied.

In a span of eight years, exactly 180 episodes were shown, and here I think are the sixteen that stood out and showed Desperate Housewives in its top form:

1. PILOT (Season 1, Episode 1)

And this is where it all begins. Just the first shot of Mary Alice killing herself with a gun as nosy neighbor Martha Huber peeks through her window is enough already to declare that this show will be big. Then we meet the actual Housewives: single mother Susan Mayer who sticks peanut butter in her faucet just to get attention of new neighbor plumber Mike Delfino, Bree Van de Kamp, as Martha Huber’s reincarnation who demands that baskets must be returned to her after Mary Alice Young’s funeral, mom of four Lynette Scavo who jumped to the pool just so that she can tame her three kids, and sexpot Gabrielle Solis who has an affair with her gardener prompting her to mow their lawn in a gorgeous gown at midnight. Of course it has to end with a bang as well when the Housewives saw a note that could have prompted Mary Alice’s death: I KNOW WHAT YOU DID. IT MAKES ME SICK. I’M GOING TO TELL.

2. PRETTY LITTLE PICTURE (Season 1, Episode 3)

This is where it gets wild, as it’s probably one of the episodes with the most memorable moments in the show’s history. Who could ever forget Susan being locked out of her house naked? Only Teri Hatcher can get away with that while being funny and likable. How about Gabrielle running three blocks in high heels because a young neighbor caught her affair with John Rowland? Lynette giving the kids hyper sugar snacks to even out Tom who refused to come to the dinner. And lastly, Marcia Cross’s Bree at her Stepford finest saying “Rex cries after he ejaculates” line is enough for it to be a classic already.

3. GUILTY (Season 1, Episode 8)

What I particularly like about this episode is that it showed the Housewives in a more human approach. While all the other episodes might be too soap opera-ish for others, this showed them in clear desperation. Gabrielle admits that she was selfish all this time though that a little bit of guilt strikes her every now and then. Bree goes beyond measures to protect the people she loves, and Susan was stuck in the middle of a broken floor. My favorite though was Lynette’s frustration as a mother and her football field scene that rakes in as one of the most genuine moments ever in this show.

4. BANG (Season 3, Episode 7)

As a starter for the show’s annual tragedy episode, desperate housewife Carolyn Bigsby (Laurie Metcalfe) holds a hostage in the town supermarket in a fear that her husband was cheating on her. What was caught in between all of these were the different people that were inside the grocery having different storylines of their own and yet smoothly binded with the hostage incident. With an Emmy worthy performance by Laurie Metcalfe, this remains, in my opinion, as the ebst Desperate Housewives episode in the history of the series.

5. MY HUSBAND, THE PIG (Season 3, Episode 16)

This episode is memorable for a lot of reasons. For one, it was Rex van de Kamp (Bree’s estranged husband) who narrated the episode. Another is that the ladies took the back seat with this one. What I like about this is that it goes to show the other perspective from the husbands’ and boyfriends’ point of view. That is pretty brave considering the nature of the series as a female-centric one.

6. GETTING MARRIED TODAY (Season 3, Episode 23)

Season 3’s finale was a good balance of setting things up and giving a preview of the upcoming season. From this, we learned a lot about Lynette’s current condition, and Susan finally tying the knot with Mike. However, we were also welcomed with a “pregnant” Bree, Gabrielle’s real love interest after marrying politician Victor, and whether Edie Britt did really commit the suicide or not.

7. THE GAME (Season 4, Episode 3)

It is truly a joy when there are episodes of Desperate Housewives that focus on the strength of the ensemble as a whole instead of watching Separate Housewives four storylines. Susan and Mike hosted a charades party that turned out everything but a party. Conflicts arise one after the other making this a highly enjoyable episode that showed a lot of chemistry not only among the four Housewives but to everyone else in the cast.

8. WELCOME TO KANAGAWA (Season 4, Episode 10)

Not all Desperate Housewives disaster episodes are successful with their attempts to bring interest to their readers. It usually is just a shortcut to kill a boatload of unnecessary minor characters in a snap by the writers. However, this one that involves a tornado hitting Wisteria Lane is golden as it manages to interweave the situation to the internal conflicts that the characters are facing during the situation. Also, it is probably the best art direction that the show has ever featured.

9. FREE (Season 4, Episode 17)

This isn’t a popular choice per se, but I like how they resolved things this season especially the story line regarding the Mayfairs. It also explored the chemistry of both Marcia Cross and Dana Delaney especially since Delaney was the original choice to play the role of Bree. The best thing about this is the flash forward concept when we saw a great surprise to the four Housewives physically and with their roles five years later.

10. MIRROR, MIRROR (Season 5, Episode 5)

This one the start of the “What If” episodes that the used show multiple times in the succeeding seasons, but what I like about it is that aside from giving backstories to the four Housewives (which is necessary given the flash forward), but it is integrated with another ensemble episode: Karen McCluskey’s 70th birthday! If that’s not a worthy cause of a celebration, then I don’t know what is. Also, this is one of the most creative cold opens the show has ever done.

11. THE BEST THING THAT EVER COULD HAVE HAPPENED (Season 5, Episode 13)

The show’s 100th episode took time to commemorate a regular visitor of Wisteria Lane, handyman Eli Scruggs (Beau Bridges). Each of the Housewives traveled back to memory lane and remembered what Eli did to their life. This is, indeed, a very memorable 100th episode for the Housewives, and a start of the trend where they commemorate a certain character by remembering the best thing the dead person did to them.

12. LOOK INTO THEIR EYES AND YOU SEE WHAT THEY KNOW (Season 5, Episode 19)

Just like what I mentioned above, this is another of those “We commemorate (insert dead character) here. While it may sound repetitive and redundant, there’s something special about this episode as the focus is one of the original Housewives in the show. Plus points were also given because the set up is that the five women are traveling which means more group interactions from them, and another point for including the fabulous Mrs. McCluskey in this tribute episode.

13. DOWN THE BLOCK THERE’S A RIOT (Season 7, Episode 10)

The last of those “disaster” episodes that the show produced, what hooked me with this one is how striking and intense the whole episode was. You can clearly identify from the get go that something crucial will happen by the end of the episode and you just get excited and excited as each detail leading to it unravels. Now when the actual “disaster” happened, it was too specific and vivid that you can’t help but still be carried away once the credits rolled.

14. COME ON OVER FOR A DINNER (Season 7, Episode 23)

This one is similar to the “Free” finale in the sense that they resolved the season’s mystery smoothly and focused on setting things up for the next season. However, what makes it different from the other season finale was that the mystery executed by the writers involved all the four Housewives together with Gabrielle’s husband, Carlos. Now that’s one secret that will definitely you go gaga while waiting for the final season of the show.

15, YOU TAKE FOR GRANTED (Season 8, Episode 16)

The thing I like the most about this episode is the treatment that the writers used to bid goodbye to one of the characters. By the episode’s cold open: it was mentioned that one of the characters featured in it will soon say goodbye at the end of the day. And as the episode progresses, we all saw those characters deal with a surprising visit from death with all but one not surviving in the end. This is really a genius episode of Housewives that worked well in my book.

16. FINISHING THE HAT (Season 8, Episode 23)

And of course, we have to have the finale right? This episode is by no means groundbreaking or revolutionary. However, there’s a specific nostalgia factor that will bring you back to the start of the series especially if you managed to watch it through the eight seasons. I love how the finale was juxtaposed with the pilot episode on so many levels which included some good casting and memorable scenes. Plus, that final scene including a stroll down the lane and how Cherry ended it with soemthing intriguing is atisfying enough for hardcore fans of the show.

How about you? What are some of your favorite Desperate Housewives episode? And will you miss the show the way that I do? 🙂

All photos are courtesy of abc.go.com/shows/desperate-housewives/photos

So here’s a recap of the different things that happened the past week:

* The Philippines won two awards at the 6th Asian Film Awards last Monday at the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Center. Shamaine Buencamino won Supporting Actress for Nino while Eugene Domingo won the People’s Choice for Best Actress. This is the second time that a Filipino won an acting award after Gina Pareno won in the same category for Serbis way back in 2009. Iran’s A Separation swept the awards this year winning Picture, Director and Screenplay for Asghar Farhadi, and Editing. Eugene Domingo, who was shimmering in gold, was the crowd favorite, thanks to her funny banter with Andy Lau. She also gets to present Best Supporting Actor that night. Hurray for Pinoy pride!

Photo courtesy of pep.ph

* FX’s American Horror Story officially campaigns in the Miniseries categories at the Emmys this year. Given the format of the series, this is the logical thing to do in order to earn more Emmy nods. However, their eligible material (13 episodes) is 12 times more than their possible competition this year. While I don’t think Connie Britton will defeat Julianne Moore or Nicole Kidman for the Emmy, she is now guaranteed a nomination. Jessica Lange will transfer her frontrunner status at the Miniseries Supporting Actress category with literally no one having a chance against her.

* In other Jessica Lange news, she now replaces Glenn Close in the Elizabeth Olsen starrer Therese Raquin. For the longest time, Close has been attached to the project despite some names literally coming and going. However, it’s now official that Lange will be replacing her for the role of Madame Raquin. Between this and Sally Field’s role in Lincoln, it’s safe to say that Meryl Streep is NOT hogging all the roles for 60+ aged actresses.

* For some reality show news, Erika van Pelt finally left Idol stage, as she was eliminated at last Thursday’s results show. Sporting a new Adam Lambert look-a-like makeover, it seems like the change of look didn’t provide her any luck. While it was Heejun Han who everybody predicted to be a goner that night, it will only take a few weeks before EVP will also be a goner. Take it as a case of foregone conclusion. Next week will probably be Heejun’s farewell unless he turns into a Sanjaya or John Stevens.

Photo courtesy of gossip,whyfame.com

* Over at The Voice, I’ve witnessed probably the advancement of the worst vocals into the live shows in the longest time that I have been watching singing reality shows. Erin Martin’s butchering over The Garage Brothers of Tina Turner’s classic “What’s Love Got to Do With It” is a big slap to genius Jamie Lono for not making it last week. Dear Erin made it sound as if Ke$ha is a Mariah or a Celine. She’s not even singing! Between this and Chessa three weeks ago, we all know that Purrfect the Cat and not Cee-Lo, should be the one tp choose the victors for his battle rounds.

* The women of Wisteria Lane a.k.a the Desperate Housewives get one last time to cover Entertainment Weekly as a group. As the nearing series finale comes, we get to see more juicy and interesting storylines among the four Housewives. While the show was never able to regain the glory of their first season heydays, I think that they were still able to come up with decent to good seasons and the performances of the Housewives has been underrated in terms of awards consideration. For the first time, they’ll be talking about that infamous Vanity Fair cover in 2005. Very juicy, indeed!

* The Hunger Games is now in theaters, and while this hasn’t topped any box office records, it’s slowly joining the bandwagon. In fact, with a good ratings from the critics and impressive box office returns, it is safe to say that it is the new book to film sensation that will keep everyone gaga. Catching Fire, though, is premiering to theaters much later than usual on November 2013.

* Oscar winner Taylor Swift? Not gonna happen folks. While T-Swift’s efforts with another T (T-Bone Burnett, that’s who) gets critical praise, together with the whole Hunger Games soundtrack, it won’t be hearing it’s name come Oscar time, as it was the second song to be featured at the credits of the movie. Oscar contenders for Best Original Song must be played in the course of the movie, up until the first song in the credits. This is the same thing that happened to Madonna’s Golden Globe winning song “Masterpiece” for W.E. Luckily for Swift though, she can count on a Globe and Grammy nods in the Original Song categories.

* Kate Winslet wants that EGOT title right? Winslet is set to appear on her first Broadway show: a play written by two time Oscar nominee (The Hours, The Reader) playwright David Hare. There is no tentative date yet for this play, but Winslet is probably going gaga over the thought of her achieving the EGOT now. If she managed to accomplish that, she’ll be the youngest member of the club whose latest inductee is producer Scott Rudin. * Lastly, it’s the Golden Screen Awards tonight. This is the closest to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association’s Golden Globes, as they separate the awards into Drama and Comedy categories. While I’m hoping for an Angel Locsin repeat win in the Best Actress: Drama category, that and Best Actor are the most difficult to predict. Martin Escudero (Zombadings), Eugene Domingo (Babae sa Septic Tank) are the frontrunners for the Comedy Lead acting while John Regala and Nonie Buencamino are the most buzzed for Supporting Actor. Nino stars Raquel Villavicencio and Shamaine Buencamino are the frontrunners for Supporting Actress while both Solenn Heusaff and Rocco Nacino might have repeat victories in the Brakthrough Acting categories.